Dover AFB completes construction on one of its runways

one of their major construction projects. 47 abc’s lissette nu?ez has more on that story. sound of plane flying track 1 the skies above the the dover air force base are going to be a lot busier. that’s because as of friday — one of their major runways has re-opened after a year and a half of renovations. during the ribbon cutting ceremony.. sound plan landing track 2 friday a c-5 and a c-17 landed to commemorate the opening of the runway. lt. col. kevin golart, commander of the civil engineering squadron 17:41:07 today it was a tough day to imagine happening17:41:09 track 3 lieutenant colonel charles throckmorton – the operations advisor for the project- admits the base faced challenges when their then 69 year old runway had to close down during renovations. lt. col. charles throckmorton 9th airlift squadron commander 17:42:35 it takes away half our capability17:42:36 butt 17:42:41 being without this primary runway took away some of our instrument capabilities. the ability to land in really bad weather.”17:42:47 track 4 because of the construction – some of their missions had to be held on their second runway – which had weight limitations because it is also in need of maintenance. for example — the planes that landed friday morning — have maximum load capacities of more than 85-tons. lt. col. kevin golart, commander of the civil engineering squadron “17:40:28 for the last 8 months we’ve had to have our maintainers and our load masters working out of new jersey to keep the c-5 mission going without break and service17:40:36” track 5 air force officials tell us the project cost approximately 112 million dollars – but most importantly extended the lifespan of the runway to up to 75 years. lt. col. charles throckmorton 9th airlift squadron commander 17:42:56 we completely removed this entire runway, replaced all the base layer underneath. and rebuilt it all the way up just like a cake. so we have all new concrete, led lightning,all new approach system, all new markings, and the entire air field environment has been replaced 17:43:09 track 6 lissette nunez 47 abc. this is not the only project happening at the dover air force. the base is currently working on repaving their second runway which is expected to be completed next summer. tonight